Percy's Past
by Earthspirit10
Summary: Like everyone else, Percy Jackson has a past, but it's not a normal one, even by demigod standards. Everyone thinks they know him, but do they really? A story of the past reliving Percy's childhood. Rated T for abuse and because I'm paranoid.
1. Without You

**Hey, guys! I'll keep this short:**

**This is my first fanfic, so just bear with me. ****Constructive criticism will be gladly welcomed as it helps me with my writing.**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 1: Without You

A loud groan tore through the air as soon as the door fell shut.

Rhea sighed and looked at her twin brother, Percy, who was cursing about the pain quite a lot for seven-year-old.

She sighed again when he didn't stop. "Are you done yet?" she asked, exasperated.

Percy stopped talking and looked back at her.

Rhea breathed a sigh of relief (she seemed to be doing that a lot lately) and was about to speak again when Percy spoke up.

She refrained a groan when he, obviously trying and failing to look pitiful, said, "But it _hurts_!"

She humphed. "Then maybe you shouldn't have done that."

Percy grew quiet, then turned back to her with a serious face. "I was trying to protect you," he said softly.

Rhea met his eyes with her own. "I know," she spoke quietly.

They fell into a comfortable silence.

"I know this is a stupid question," Rhea began, "but I want to say it anyway: why do you keep taking the hits?"

"Rhea—"

"No," she cut him off. "Why do you keep taking the beatings when it was supposed to be mine?"

"Rhea, please—"

"I mean, what happens if he went to far and you die, and then—"

"I—"

"All I know is that I don't want you to get hurt, and I can't just stand there and watch him hit you—"

"Just let me—"

"And I—I—I can't live with myself knowing that something could happen," Rhea swallowed. Tears were falling freely down her face now.

"Rhea—"

"I just can't be without you," she whispered.

Percy stared at her, his face unreadable. The silence stretched out between them, and this time, it was awkward. Rhea stared into his eyes. His swirling sea-green eyes. It was usually open and calm for the world to see, but now, it was a mass of storms, closed off and slowly filling with tears.

Then he hugged her.

They clung onto each other as if they were both each other's lifeline, crying silently as they took on Rhea's words.

Percy let go and gazed into her own sea-green eyes. "Percy—" Rhea started.

"I'm not leaving you," he said firmly. "I'm not leaving without you."

Rhea looked at him. She gave him a watery smile. "I'm not leaving without you either," she echoed back.

"No matter what happens, nothing is going to stop me from fighting, from going back to you, from staying with you, because I love you. More than anything else in the world. I can't let you get hurt either, so please, let me deal with—with _him_," Percy spat out the word.

Rhea crossed her arms. "If I deserve it, let me have it," she said, her voice leaving no arguments.

Percy scoffed. "You never deserved any of it. It's Smelly Gabe's own poisoned mind."

Rhea snickered. "Smelly Gabe," she snorted.

Percy stared at her. "Rhea," he whined. "This is serious." But the corner of his mouth was also twitching.

Rhea shook her head. "Sorry, Percy," she said, laughing, "you're really deep, but you're still horrible at these kinds of talks. Sometimes makes me wonder if you're really seven years old, but then you unintentionally say something funny, and then I know you're still seven. Even though I'm your twin and I'm supposed to not question that."

He pouted at her. Then his mouth curled into a devious smirk.

Rhea looked at him warily. "Percy," she warned. "If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, don't—"

"Hey, Rhea, want to escape this house and run away for the moment while Mom is gone?"

Rhea stared at him. He stared at her. Then she smiled evilly. "Why, of course I want to," she sang, which wasn't really necessary. "But not without you," she added softly.

**A/N:**

**So . . . like it? Hate it? Please review!**


	2. Away, But Not Alone

**Heya! I want to give a thank you to the people who are already reading, reviewing, favoriting, and/or following my first fanfic so far!**

**Anyway, I'm done with the next chapter, so on with the story!**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 2: Away, But Not Alone

Moonlight shone through the open window of the room. The wind blew gently, ruffling the blue curtains.

Something bumped into him. He jumped up, startled.

"Sorry!" a voice—Rhea, he realized—hissed quietly.

Percy relaxed and shrugged, making sure his sister saw it. "It's fine," he replied, just as quietly.

Rhea slowly approached the windowsill, carefully making sure where she stepped as to not wake up the whole house, which only contained Smelly Gabe other than them. Their mom was out late for work.

Percy followed behind her, his sea-green eyes trailing across the ground. He hoped he wouldn't trip over anything. That would be embarrassing, and it would give away their escape.

Once they both reached the window safely, Rhea climbed out of it and reached for the branch that was hanging just outside of the window. She grabbed onto it and prepared her legs to latch on.

Percy waited with his breath held as he watched his twin fling herself onto the tree branch. She looked back at him with her slightly bluer sea-green eyes.

Percy took a deep breath, and, ever so slowly, climbed onto the windowsill. He reached out one arm toward the branch, then the other. Cautiously inching his way further out, he leapt out of the window and spun around, landing perfectly on the branch.

He had no idea how he did that.

Percy nearly fell off the branch when he felt Rhea tap his shoulder. He turned around to face her, smiling sheepishly.

Rhea raised an eyebrow at him and beckoned to the ground. His mouth dropped open to an "O". He had never considered that they were going to have to climb down, nor did he figure out how to do so.

Rhea groaned silently and face palmed, ending with a glare. Percy shrugged. Rhea hissed at him. Percy grinned.

Rhea sighed. She made a face that completed the sentence she mouthed at him, _You practically flew out of the window, spun in the air, and landed perfectly onto the branch, but have no idea how to climb down a stupid tree?_

Percy smiled sheepishly, his hand rubbing the back of his neck. _Oops?_ He mouthed back.

Rhea looked like she wanted to bash his head against the tree trunk.

Percy sighed and gestured to the trunk. Rhea glared at him and moved back. She visibly prepared herself.

Percy's jaw dropped to the ground as his own dear sister nimbly shinnied down the tree as if she'd been doing it all her life.

As she dropped down, Rhea glanced back up at him and smiled smugly.

He glared at her. _Don't leave me here!_

Thankfully, Rhea didn't ditch him.

Percy gulped as he mentally prepared himself for the embarrassment that was with no doubt going to come and physically prepared himself for a very difficult climbing.

It turned out to be easier than he thought it would be.

Percy blinked, not sure what he should be feeling, because how were you supposed to feel when you accomplished something that was supposed to be really hard but turned out to be not hard so you couldn't really congratulate yourself if this was easy, but could still congratulate yourself since you thought it to be hard, but that also wouldn't even make sense since—

Actually, you know what? Let's just say he felt nothing. This was giving him a headache.

Percy turned to his over-enthusiastic sister (seriously, he was the one who suggested it, yet Rhea was the one who felt most excited about it) as she pulled his hand dragging him to the back alleyways.

"Wait!" Percy called out to her, quietly as to not wake up the entire neighborhood, if not, the apartment. "Rhea, where are we going?"

"I don't know and I don't care!" was her only reply.

Percy thought over her answer and shrugged. It sounded good enough to him.

They ran for what seemed like an eternity before they came across a wooded area.

Rhea turned to Percy, beaming. "Isn't this exciting?" Rhea exclaimed excitedly.

"Sneaking out at night with no one knowing?" Percy replied, grinning. "Definitely."

Suddenly a growl cut through the still night air. The twins jumped. They looked at each other and, together, ever so slowly, turned to the source.

Red glowing eyes were staring right at them.

Percy gulped. "At least," he started, "I know I'm not alone."

Rhea stared at him incredulously. Maybe this was not the time to spout out Alan Walker references, he thought wryly.

The large, hellish black dog that seemed to come out of the pages of Greek Mythology sprung.

**A/N:**

**DUN DUN DUN! Cliffhanger!**

**Like it? Hate it? Did I do good? Review, and thanks for reading!**


	3. Vortex

**YOLO YOLO YOLO! ****I know some of you are dying to know what happened next (even though it was only a day), so here it is!**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 3: Vortex

Rhea panicked.

It wasn't because of the attack, no. It wasn't because she was defenseless and the dog could possibly eat her and her brother up. It definitely wasn't because of the eyes.

No, it was because it looked like a hellhound, but it couldn't be a hellhound, because hellhounds were from the Greek myths and myths weren't real, so it couldn't be a hellhound. She must have been hallucinating.

Anyway, Rhea panicked. So she did the logical thing: she threw a stone at its eye with perfect aim.

The black dog froze and howled in pain and fury, shaking its entire body. It then turned toward her with a snarl.

Uh-oh.

It barked at her and prepared for a launch toward the direction Rhea was in.

"NO!"

A heavy force crashed into her as the what seemed to be a hellhound—which it wasn't, because that was impossible—was about to chew her head off.

Rhea let out a squeak as she looked back.

What she saw terrified her.

The heavy force turned out to be Percy, but he didn't get out of the way in time. The dog—Rhea decided to call it a dog since it was most definitely _not_ a hellhound—had his leg in its mouth with Percy flailing around, one hand holding said leg. His mouth was open in a silent scream, his face contorted in pain, his petrified eyes wildly darting around the forest. Blood dripped down from the dog's mouth where its teeth was clamped over the leg.

Rhea scrambled back to her feet. She took a step back as the dog shook his head forcing out a strangled scream from Percy before dropping him.

Percy collapsed in a heap below the monstrous thing. Seeing him curled up in a ball, shaking, Rhea snapped out of her stupor and glared at the dog—no, _monster_—with newfound hatred.

Many people described anger as seeing red, not knowing what you are doing, acting with a burst of strength. What Rhea felt was different. She had never felt as alive as she had before, never saw the world any sharper than before. She felt stronger, yes, but she had never felt so much more powerful. Rhea felt anger, true anger, because no being touched her little brother.

Rhea let out a yell as she picked up a long stick from the ground. She pointed the sharper side of the branch to the beast and charged.

The hellhound—Rhea was now convinced it was a hellhound—saw her and turned. It prepared to attack only to get impaled by the stick.

Rhea pulled it out only to find yellow dust in place of the hound. She blinked in confusion as the adrenaline wore off.

Rhea immediately turned to her brother but not before taking a closer look at the stick. She gasped at the reddish complexion and the sharp, glowing point of the—was that bronze?—stick. She looked up and down at it wildly before spotting the lettering inscribed on the side: Δίνη. Vortex.

A soft whimper in front of her brought her out of her daze. Rhea's eyes widened as she dropped the spear and hurried to her twin brother's side. She looked around frantically before she felt a cool drop on her nose.

Rhea blinked and looked down, cross-eyed, before another drop landed on her hand. She stared at it.

It was a raindrop.

Rhea glanced at the sky before looking back down at Percy. Her jaw dropped as she saw that, with every drop, falling more rapidly with each second, he was healing. It was slow, but he was healing.

Rhea whipped her head around to look back at her spear, convinced that it brought this miracle upon them, only to find it gone.

Rhea sat beside the creek she found, arms wrapped around her head buried in her knees.

She didn't understand. She only ran away just to be free for awhile. She was going to come back. She was going to come back with Percy. But there were so many things happening all at once she didn't want to go back—at least, not yet.

The hellhound—Rhea didn't believe it at first. She had always thought that the Greek myths were just, well, myths. But now that she had seen proof that they were _real_, she wondered if there were any more. If so, she didn't like it. She didn't like it one bit.

That monster tried to hurt them. It tried to kill them. Rhea clenched her fists. She didn't want to be a part of this world. She didn't want this world to be real. If Greek Mythology was actually real, then there must be other monsters. Monsters that could hurt her. Monsters that could hurt her family. She wouldn't let that happen. She'd try to stop them, whatever the cost.

And then there was the spear. The spear named Δίνη, or Vortex in English. Rhea didn't know how she knew. She just knew. But she did know that the spear was a good sign. She knew it saved them. She knew how to use it, even if she didn't know how she knew.

Rhea sighed and looked back to the running water in front of her. She watched the little fish swim by. She watched her reflection, at how much her mom always tell her that she looked like her father. She stared at the sea-green in her eyes. The swirling hurricane in them. The vortex that would never end and never give up.

She was a vortex. Rhea knew it.

**A/N:**

**There's a little bit of foreshadowing in here, even if it's not obvious (I wasn't trying to be obvious anyway).**

**Anyway, I hope you like this! Please review!**


	4. I'm Sorry, What?

**I'm so, so sorry for not updating for nearly a week! If you want to know my poor excuse, it's because I had a lot of homework to do from school, and then the extracurricular activities also created some writer's block for me. As you can clearly see I may slow down a bit on chapters, sorry again!**

**Well, anyway, here's another chapter . . .**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 4: I'm Sorry, What?

Percy woke up to Rhea staring into his face.

Percy was so startled he practically fell into the stream behind him.

_What the—_

"Rhea, what happened?" he asked, confused, not even caring that he was still in the water. It felt nice.

Rhea looked conflicted. She looked down and bit her lip, then glanced back up at him again.

"Percy," she started slowly, "what do you remember?"

Percy knitted his eyebrows together. What did he remember?

"I remember some gigantic black dog attacking you, then I—" he faltered. He stared at Rhea.

Rhea made a _go on _gesture.

Percy swallowed. "Um," he said intelligently.

Rhea stared at him, her face passive.

"It was all a dream, right?" he spoke hurriedly. "The pain, the dog, the running away—it was all a dream. Right?"

Rhea bit the inside of her cheek and said, "Would you believe me if I said it was real?"

Percy blinked slowly. That was when he noticed where they were.

They were in a heavily wooded area. Sunlight was already filtering through the trees, so it must have been hours since he was last awake. Birds were chirping cheerfully as they flitted to and fro across the treetops, fluttering around their nests. Percy looked down and saw the tiny fish in the creek he sat in. He slowly twisted his head toward the clearing—the place where the attack took place, if his memory served right.

And that's when he saw the blood. The golden dust still scattered around. The crevices the dog made. And that's when he knew nothing was a dream.

He turned his head back to Rhea. "I believe you," he said stiffly.

Percy looked down at his leg—the pain, the pain, he remembered the pain, the pain that was entirely worth it if it was to save his sister—and saw no wound.

His eyes widened. "How—" he began.

"It healed," Rhea spoke quickly. "The rain healed you. Water healed you."

Percy looked up. He believed her. He believed her. No matter how bizarre it seemed, he believed her.

"Well," he drawled. Rhea tensed. Percy tried not to laugh, even in this serious situation. He continued, "At least I didn't get my head chewed off and chucked into the stream."

Rhea looked at him weirdly, then burst into laughter. Percy grinned stupidly. It wasn't that funny, he knew, but the mood was so tense, so solemn, it needed something that sounded less like a funeral.

Then he remembered something. He couldn't believe that wasn't at least the second thing that came to mind.

"How did you kill the—the thing?"

Rhea looked away. "A hellhound. It was a hellhound."

Percy blinked twice and cocked his head to the side. "Okay . . . assuming I know what you're talking about," he said confusedly, "how did you kill the . . . hellhound?"

"I stabbed it."

One sentence. Three words. But it was enough to make his brain explode (not literally).

"What?!" he gaped at her. "B—but—how—why—w—wait—with what?"

Rhea rubbed her face with her hands. "I don't know," she said dejectedly. "I—I think it was a spear."

"A spear."

"Yes. A spear named Δίνη."

Percy stared at her. "Δίνη. Vortex."

Rhea looked at him weirdly. "You can say that? Understand it?"

"Yes, can't you?"

"Yeah, but . . ."

"It's Greek. I know."

"Percy."

"Yeah?"

"I think Greek Mythology is real."

Percy snorted. "Yeah, what gave it away?" he said sarcastically. "Was it the hellhound? Or . . . maybe it was the Greek name of the spear?"

Rhea made a frustrated noise. "Percy," she scolded.

Percy waved it off. "Yeah, yeah, be serious," he mimicked her voice.

"I do NOT sound like that!"

"I know. That's what makes it fun."

"How does that even work?"

"It just does."

Rhea sighed. "Well," she started. "I—I also think we're—" she gulped. "Uh," she tried again.

Percy made a face at her. "We're what?" he asked, slightly irritated.

Rhea licked the inside of her cheek. Percy narrowed his eyes.

"It's nothing," she said finally.

"You're lying," he declared.

"No . . ."

"Don't deny it, Rhea, you're lying. It's important."

Rhea swallowed. "It's—it's silly."

Percy groaned. "Whatever it was that made you nervous, it's important."

Rhea sighed defeatedly and said in a very quiet voice Percy had to lean in a bit to hear her, "I think that . . . that we're demigods."

Percy reeled back and blinked a million times an hour. "I'm sorry, what?!"

"See, I told you it was silly."

"I—are you sure?"

"Maybe."

"Why do you think that?"

Rhea stared at him incredulously, as if he was the single most dumbest person in the universe.

"Well, why else would the hellhound attack us?" she reasoned.

"Because it wanted to chase people?" he guessed. He probably got that wrong, from the look his twin gave him.

"No," she stressed the word. "It's because we're from Greek Mythology, too, so the hellhound showed itself, I guess, so that only means we're demigods!" she exclaimed, exasperated. Then she blinked. "Or maybe it's not only from the Greek myths," Rhea corrected herself, "but who cares! We're demigods!"

Percy blinked. "Oh," he said smartly. He was still skeptical. They both could have eaten the same magic mushrooms and hallucinated the same thing! It was possible!

"So are we going home, then?" he asked instead.

Rhea licked the inside of her cheek again. "Yes."

Percy growled, frustrated. "Rhea, don't lie to me," he huffed.

Rhea looked conflicted. "You—I—we're going to go home," she said firmly.

Percy eyed her suspiciously. She sounded like she meant it, but it also seemed like she was hiding something. He opened his mouth to say something, only to be interrupted by, "Come on, let's go!" from Rhea as he was promptly dragged to the direction their house was in.

The sun was almost midway to the top of the sky when they finally arrived home. Percy and Rhea looked at each other. They both took a deep breath and knocked on the door together.

Thudding footsteps rushed to the door before it was flung open revealing the flustered image of their mother. As soon as she saw them, she placed a hand over mouth with tears in her eyes as if to choke back a sob.

"Percy! Rhea!" she exclaimed tearfully as she hurled herself on the twins. Percy gasped and tried to wriggle out of her grip.

Rhea seemed to be having the same problem because she said—more like wheezed—, "Mom. Can't. Breathe."

Reluctantly, their mom pulled out. She gazed at them with saddened eyes as she said, "What happened?"

Percy met his sister's eyes with his own. They came to an agreement: they were going to tell her the truth. At least, half of it.

Percy looked back at Sally and blurted out at the same time as Rhea, "Smelly Gabe."

Sally looked horrified. "Gabe? Did he do something?"

"No!" Percy cried. "No, no, not at all," he lied hurriedly.

Rhea was shaking her head furiously. "He was just being really, _really_ annoying, so we needed to get away for awhile," she said briefly. It was mostly true. Gabe _was_ being annoying. They did need to get away. They just didn't mention the hitting. And stuff.

Their mother still looked skeptical but didn't question them further.

As the twins walked inside the living room, Sally bit her lip anxiously. She looked at them sadly. They were going to find out soon, she knew, but she didn't want them to go. She knew they might already have, but she also knew there was nothing she could do about it.

As soon as Percy stepped near the entrance of the kitchen with his sister, he heard the loud, obnoxious voice of the unmistakable Gabe.

"Hey, you two! Looks like you came back. Well, then, get me a beer!"

Percy heard Rhea groan. He looked at his mom and saw Sally begging him with her eyes to not anger Gabe any further.

Home sweet home.

**A/N:**

**Again, I'm really sorry for not updating! I made this chapter longer as an apology. I was heading for 2K words, but it wouldn't fit well, so I made it 1K (not including the author notes).**

**I hope you like this one; I'm really sorry for the wait. Please review!**


	5. Away and Alone

**. . . Eh, heh heh . . .**

**For the people who haven't abandoned me yet . . . thank you, and sorry. I know it's been a while . . . and I'm not that sure if school is a good excuse but . . . I'M SORRY!**

**If you're waiting, then you probably waited a long time, so I'm so sorry for that. Thanks for staying with me, I know my story isn't the best.**

**Okay, enough with that; you're probably here for the story (which I have no doubt about), not sentences of apologies, so here it is!**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 5: Away and Alone

Rhea flinched as she was roughly slammed into a wall. Her eyes clenched shut, the nauseous smell of beer reaching her nostrils.

"You insolent brat!" Gabe slurred harshly.

A thump from Rhea's right alerted her. Her eyes shot open just in time to witness her brother tackle the walrus in front of her.

"Don't you dare hurt her, you—" a very impressive string of colorful curses flew out from Percy's mouth as he wrestled Gabe to the ground.

"Percy, don't!" Rhea cried.

Percy ignored her as he continued to snarl at the drunk man. Gabe paid no mind to the obvious hostility and instead reached out for a nearby beer bottle.

Rhea widened her eyes. "Percy, watch out!"

Percy rolled just in time as Gabe brought down the bottle at the air where Percy's head was just at.

Rhea shook her head and grabbed her brother's hand. She dragged him to their room and slammed the door.

She whirled around to face him. "What the Hades, Percy?!" she shouted.

Percy rubbed his eye where a bruise was already forming. "First of all," he said indifferently, "don't say _Hades_. Greek Mythology isn't real. Second of all, he was about to hurt you. I couldn't just stand there."

Rhea rolled her eyes. Did she mention that ever since the hellhound incident, Percy had been completely convinced it was all a hallucination? "To answer your _first of all_, Percy," she replied, exasperated, "Greek Mythology is very much real. We saw it ourselves. And no, it's not magic mushrooms. As for the _second of all_, I can take care of myself, thank you very much."

Percy huffed and turned away from her.

Rhea sighed and sat on her bed.

They sat in complete silence. Percy fidgeted with the helm of his shirt, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. Rhea picked at her blanket, not looking at him.

Rhea opened her mouth to say something, then bit her lip as she thought the better of it. Percy wouldn't let her. She couldn't tell him.

Percy's eyes flicked over to Rhea when she opened her mouth. He waited for her to say something. Rhea caught his gaze and looked away quickly.

"You wanted to tell me something, dear sister?" he spoke lowly, his voice laced with sarcasm.

Rhea's breath hitched.

"Perhaps, it's because." He paused. Rhea clenched her eyes shut. Since when did her brother, her dear little twin brother, speak that coldly?

Percy continued, "Do you not like it here?"

Rhea kept quiet.

"Are you just going to leave like that?"

Rhea shook her head slowly.

"Are you just going to abandon me like I'm nothing?!" Percy was near screaming now.

Rhea was crying silent tears now. The droplets of misery dripped down her chin onto the mattress.

"Fine, then," her brother snapped, and Rhea's heart broke to hear him sound so harsh, so miserable, so _cold_. "Leave. I don't care. I don't know why, but I do know that you're breaking a promise."

Rhea stood abruptly. She whirled around to face him.

"I love you, Percy. I love you, that's why," she whispered, her voice choking in her tears. "I can't stay here. We both about all of this. But you refuse to believe it. You're still safe because of that, but now that I'm here, you're not." Rhea furiously wiped her face. "I can't stay here, because I _believe_."

Percy watched her, his face emotionless. He sighed, a loud, mournful sigh of defeat. It brought tears to Rhea's eyes to see him like this.

"I won't let you."

Rhea laid on her bed, blinking blearily at the dark ceiling above her. She closed her eyes and listened to the soft breathing of her twin.

When her internal clock told her that it was time, she rose from the bed. She grabbed the small bag from under the bed she was meant to sleep on. Rhea carefully stepped over the objects laid askew on the floor. When she reached the door, she looked back at Percy. Her eyes closed for a moment before it opened again.

She clicked the door shut.

Rhea walked across the hallway quietly. There was no need for tiptoeing. It hardly took any effect on her. She was quiet on her own.

Rhea passed their mother's bedroom. Here she hesitated. She looked at the door mournfully before tearing her gaze away from it and continuing to walk to the living room.

She passed the broken beer bottles. She passed Smelly Gabe, who was passed out on the couch. She reached the front door and opened it.

It gave the slightest bit of noise, but not enough for anyone else to hear it. Rhea breathed in through her nose quietly and stepped outside. She closed the door.

That was when she ran. And she ran hard.

Rhea reached the edge of the forest where the hellhound attack was at. She kept walking, her gaze focused ahead firmly.

Her shoes hit the water of the stream. Rhea looked down at her reflection. Her jaw set, she reached in and pulled out the familiar stick that helped save their lives.

"Rhea, no!"

Said person was jolted out of thoughts as her eyes glanced over to Percy. He reached her and stood up straight, not at all fazed by his sprint.

"You can't," were the words that popped out of his mouth.

Rhea shook her head. "I have to."

Percy stared at her a moment longer. He clenched his jaw tightly and said determinedly, "Then I'll come with you."

Rhea looked at him in the eye. "You don't know what's out there, because you don't believe," she said stiffly. "But I do. That's what makes me so dangerous. You can't come."

Was it her imagination, or was the stream continuously growing larger?

Percy growled at her. "If you're going, I'm going. I'm not changing my mind."

The river was swirling around her now. Rhea closed her eyes as the refreshing sensation covered her entire body.

Percy apparently seemed to notice the water. His eyes widened fearfully. "No!" he cried. "Rhea, don't!"

Rhea shook her head in the water. "I have to," she said, her words flowing through perfectly.

"Rhea, please!" her brother begged. Rhea swallowed the lump in her throat. Percy never begged.

Rhea could feel herself fading away to wherever the water was taking her. Percy tried to reach out to her, but it seemed like there was an invisible

wall around her.

Percy closed his eyes, tears spilling out at a rapid rate.

Rhea smiled sadly at him. "You can live without me," she whispered softly.

Percy snapped his eyes open. His face hardened then. "Right," he snarled. "I can definitely live _without you_."

Rhea flinched as she recalled that one day. The day they promised each other that they would never leave each other. Now . . .

"What happened to that promise, huh?" Percy sneered. He pivoted on his heel and walked away, but not before glancing back at his sister.

Rhea watched him mournfully as his mask broke and his eyes shattered. He turned away as Rhea was whisked into the water, faded into a place neither of them knew then.

The Vortex was gone.

**A/N:**

**Rhea isn't dead. Just bringing that out. I have something else in store for her, which won't show up until my next fanfiction (I haven't written it yet. I prefer to write my fanfictions one by one. Sorry if you wanted to check it out, just not now.).**

**This story won't be told by Rhea's perspective anymore. That would give it away.**

**So now this is the start of Percy's adventures without Rhea.**

**I'm sorry it wasn't as long as you guys probably wanted, especially after the long wait. I tried to think of a way, but it wouldn't fit right. It would be like a run-on sentence, except it's a chapter. A run-on chapter. I'm not sure if it made sense, but oh well.**

**There are about 1200 words in here, not including author notes and the chapter name, if you're curious.**

**Please review!**


	6. Of Sticks and Stones

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 6: Of Sticks and Stones

Percy flipped an apple in the air. He watched as it soared overhead and landed back on his palm. He flicked it up again. The apple silhouetted in the sunlight and dropped down. Up. Down. Up. Down. Again, and again, and again.

"Percy," he heard his mom call him. He ignored her and continued throwing his apple.

"Percy, leave the apple alone," his mother tried again. Said person tilted his head and dropped the apple, not caring where it might end up.

"Percy."

Percy sighed and rubbed his face. He slumped against the window from where he was standing.

"Percy, please," his mother said, her voice filled with pain. "Come in."

Percy stiffened and walked back into the house. He kicked off his shoes and stopped in front of his mom.

"I—" his voice broke.

Sally looked at him sadly as if she knew what he was about to say.

Percy shook his head and stared at his feet. "I can't take this anymore," he finally choked out.

Sally's breath hitched. She pulled her son in for a hug. "Oh, honey," she whispered.

Percy pulled away. He closed his eyes and turned, his feet moving almost robotically to his room.

As soon he closed the door Percy dashed to his desk—_his_, not _theirs_—and whipped out a piece of paper and a pen. He squinted at the paper, his hand gripping the pen tightly as it wrote. To him the message looked like a jumble of words, but he pretty much memorized the alphabet—duh!—and the word placement.

Once he was satisfied with his message he placed the paper in the middle of the desk where it could be clearly seen. He set the pen down next to it.

Percy jerked his chin up and lifted the backpack from under the desk. He glanced at the door one last time before jumping out of the open window.

Literally.

Percy grabbed a branch mid fall and flipped over. He landed on the branch. Percy inched his way toward the trunk. He set his hands and slung his legs over. He slid down the tree and broke into a sprint.

Once again Percy reached the forest. He still refused to believe that Greek Mythology was real. It was better to pretend it didn't exist than hate it forever for taking _her_ away from him. For corrupting _her_.

Percy clenched his fists and walked along the river that was once a stream. He stared at the fish as they swam hurriedly. Some of them even stopped and stared at him back, twirling around excitedly before resuming their journey.

Percy closed his eyes as he trudged deeper into the forest. He opened his eyes and looked down. A branch laid in front of him. It was probably three feet long. Percy decided to use this in case he needed to defend himself.

Percy picked it up carefully in his hands and was about to continue when he realized something.

He had no idea how to use the thing.

Percy sucked in a sharp breath. He'd need to train himself to use it.

He turned slowly to a tree. It seemed like a good enough target. Percy positioned the stick in a sword-like grip. For some odd reason, it felt more natural that way.

Percy took a deep breath and rushed forward. The branch stabbed into the tree, but not enough to stick in it. Percy thrust it out and slashed at the trunk. His movements were kind of sloppy, but he could improve. He continued to hack at the tree in various places, his eyes never wavering from the target.

When Percy finished, he was panting hard. The tree was stripped off of its bark, it's inner one slightly peeled. Blunt slash marks were marked blurriedly on the chipped wood like young animals attempting to mark their territory.

Percy needed to sharpen his stick. Which would require a stone. He looked around and spotted one right at the bank of the stream. Percy picked it up and sat on a boulder. He brought the end of the stick he'd been using for the past hour to the stone and struck it through. Sparks flew from the stone, but not enough to make a fire. Percy continued this process for a few moments.

Once he was satisfied he stood up again. Percy turned to the tree he had previously used as a target. He winced at the state it was in. Maybe he should use a different one.

Percy turned to a different tree and leveled the newly sharpened branch in front of him. He charged and hacked at it roughly. On and on this went, and on and on he sharpened his branch to the fullest. Soon trees were littered with slash marks, with more trees still being stabbed with the branch.

Percy raised his branch one last time and brought it down on a low hanging branch he was using.

It cracked and fell to the floor.

Percy widened his eyes and stared at the fallen branch in front of him. It was covered in marks—marks that he made. He'd been so focused on getting the moves right, he didn't realize that he was damaging the tree even further.

Oops . . .

Percy looked at tree and apologized, "Sorry, tree. I didn't mean to."

Great. He was talking to a tree. Wonderful. He had to be going insane.

A twig snapped somewhere behind him.

Percy whipped around only to see a rather sheepish boy raising his hands in surrender. Percy narrowed his eyes at him. The boy seemed to be around his age, seven years old, probably a year younger. He had an elfish look to him and curly brown hair. The boy seemed scrawny, even for his age.

"Who are you?" Percy asked skeptically.

The boy tilted his head and grinned, though it didn't exactly reach his eyes.

"Call me Leo," he replied cheerfully.

Percy opened his mouth to give him his name, then thought better of it and closed it.

Leo seemed to notice this. "You don't have to tell me your name," he said hurriedly. "Maybe just something I can call you."

Percy eyed him warily before slumping down in defeat. He shook his head and cracked the slightest hint of a smile—the first one he had in days.

"My name is Percy. My _actual_ name."

**A/N:**

**And . . . Leo comes into action!**

**I've always wondered how Percy knew Leo. You know, back in SoN, when Percy said that the picture of Sammy looked familiar to him? Well, Sammy was from the 1930s or so, and Leo looks almost actually like him, so it must be Leo Percy was remembering. Rick Riordan never elaborated on that. At least, I don't think so. So I just decided to add Leo in here! Percy and Leo's adventures!**

**Besides, there doesn't seem to be enough bromance between the two.**

**Please review!**


	7. Back

**Hiya, another chapter today! Sorry for the wait, but . . . school. Need I say more?**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 7: Back

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Leo," he said slowly, his face struggling to stay passive. _Do not explode, do not explode . . ._

Leo grinned cheekily, half of a stick in each hand.

_Do not explode . . ._

Percy groaned, "What are we going to use to defend ourselves if you keep breaking things?"

Leo shrugged. "Run?" he suggested, only to be received by a glare.

_Do not— Oh, I can't—_

"Running won't help!" Percy flung his arms up in exasperation. "We can't keep trying to outrun . . . whatever we could be running from!"

Leo rolled his eyes. "Relax," he tried to reassure his friend. "We can just do some smarts and climb trees and throw sticks at whoever wants to kill us."

Percy snorted. "You and I both know we can't do smarts."

Leo shrugged again. "What about climbing trees and throwing sticks?" he asked nonchalantly.

Percy stared at him incredulously. "Are those even going to help us?"

Leo shrugged (Percy felt like he should stop doing that) again. "Dunno."

Percy sighed. He shoved his hands into his pockets. He turned and trudged through the streets.

They had been walking for who knows how long, dashing across streets in a desperate attempt to not be seen (they might have been seen, but no one had said anything), running from shadows, exploring the world.

Percy walked by a pole that had a poster with a picture of Leo on it along with the information on who to contact. Percy looked around cautiously before ripping it off and throwing it into a nearby trash can. He looked around again. No one had seen it.

Oh yeah, Percy might've forgotten to mention that Leo was a runaway foster child. No explanation needed. This was Leo's story, not his.

Speaking of Leo, he was bouncing along like an over-excited dog ready for playing. Percy rolled his eyes in exasperation and pulled his friend into a nearby forest.

As soon as they got in deep enough, Leo turned to Percy. "Hey, how long do you think we've been running across the country?"

Percy shrugged. "I'm not sure. Two months maybe? Three?"

Leo nodded. Then he stopped. Percy glanced at him quizzically.

"Percy," Leo spoke slowly. He glanced at his friend uneasily. "I know I have no one left but . . . what about your mom?"

Percy froze. He clenched his eyes shut and turned away.

"Oh, geez, I'm sorry! I'm really, really, really sorry! Like, really! Please, I didn't mean it, don't get mad, I was trying to, you know, and—"

"It's fine," Percy said, his voice thick with emotion. He swallowed the lump in his throat. "I was planning to come back during the spring, anyway. I just needed to get away for a while."

"Oh."

An awkward silence stretched between them. Percy could hear Leo shuffling nervously. He interrupted Leo before he could speak, "You can stay at my house today if you want."

Percy could _feel_ Leo widening his eyes.

"Wait, hold on a minute—you're asking me to stay at your place? I—"

"Yes, yes, I am. Only for today, though. Get used to it."

"But—"

"Do you want me to take back the offer, Valdez?"

"I, uh—"

"That's what I thought."

"Hey, I—"

"Let's keep moving."

Percy walked past the now seven-year-old. He struggled to keep from laughing at Leo's dumbstruck expression as he trailed behind him. That is until Leo spoke up.

"I have a hammer."

Percy whipped around so fast it was a wonder his head stayed in place.

"What?" he demanded. "You had a weapon this entire time and never even told me?"

"Eh . . ."

Percy shook his head and sighed. "I hope you know how to use that." He paused. "Got any more weapons for me to use?" he asked hopefully, only to receive a no. His face fell and he sighed—again.

"Let's go."

"Percy," Leo whined, "are we there yet?"

"Almost," Percy replied briskly. He stepped onto the next street and stopped in front of a familiar building.

The apartment hit him in a wave of nostalgia. His heart ached as he thought of _her_, then he thought of his mother who was waiting for him inside. He gulped as he led Leo to the stairs.

When they stopped in front of his door, he hesitated. Percy shook his head and raised a fist to knock on it.

The door flew open so fast it nearly knocked it off its hinges. He was then thrust into a gigantic hug from his mother, the latter sobbing tremendously into his shoulder. Percy gasped and tried to wriggle out of her grip.

"Mom," he gasped. "I—"

His mom pulled away and glared at him. "Never do that again, young man. Got it?"

Percy blinked. "I'm seven . . ."

Sally sighed. Then something caught her attention. "Who's that?"

Percy looked over his shoulder to find Leo shuffling awkwardly in the doorway. "That's Leo. A friend."

"A friend," Sally echoed.

"Yes . . ."

A smile broke onto her features as she beamed at the Hispanic boy. "Come on in," she said cheerfully.

Leo stared at her before stammering, "No, uh, I really don't want to intrude—"

"Nonsense," Sally scolded. "You're a part of the family, too. I'm not leaving you out there."

Leo grinned and practically bounced inside. He plopped onto the couch.

Sally turned her attention back to Percy. "Gabe's not here today," she whispered.

Percy nodded. He turned and flopped onto the couch next to Leo. Sally sat in front of them, glasses of water already in her hands.

Leo stared at them incredulously. "How'd you get them so fast?" he asked in wonder.

Sally smiled slyly. "You'll never know."

Leo stared at him a moment longer before exclaiming, "Percy, I think I like your mom!"

Percy chuckled. "You can't just not like her," he grinned. "She's the best."

Sally watched them with a smile on her face. Her son hadn't smiled since _she_ left. Now, he could have a friend to be with.

"Well," she started, setting down the water on the coffee table. She was grateful that Leo didn't even comment on the way the house looked. "How are you, Leo?"

Leo shrugged. "Good."

Sally studied him. "What I meant is, how is life treating you?"

Immediately, she could see him tensing up, every muscle in his body stiff.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she told him gently, "but you'll feel better if you talk about it."

Percy watched them curiously. He didn't get what his mother was trying to do.

Leo looked down. He swallowed tightly. "My mom . . ." he faltered. "She died in a fire. I never knew my father, so . . ."

Sally gasped softly. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she whispered, but her mind was working overdrive. _I never knew my father,_ he'd said. Could it be possible that Leo . . .

Percy asked tentatively, "Mom?"

Sally shook her head and smiled at her son. "What is it, Percy?" she asked gently.

Percy squirmed nervously. "Where would Leo be staying? He . . ." he trailed off and looked at her, trying to send her a message. Sally seemed to get it, _Leo can't stay for long. Gabe will be back. We can't leave him out on the streets for the police._

"Leo," Sally said softly. The said person looked at her. She continued, "I know you don't want to, but we can't keep you as your foster family."

Leo looked down. His voice cracked when he said, "O—okay. I understand."

Sally's heart broke to see a poor child like this. "We can find you a new one if you want. A family that would take care of you."

Leo stared at her with wide eyes. "I—" he started then swallow. "Can I be near you guys?" he asked nervously.

Sally smiled. "I'll try to ask any friendly neighbor if they want you, then they can take care of you for the time being."

Leo grinned so widely his cheeks hurt. He leaped up and hugged the woman. "Thank you," he breathed. "I might not like being fostered by anyone else, but thank you."

Sally squeezed his shoulder. "You can visit us any time," she promised. She looked at the clock, and her face fell. "Oh, no," she whispered.

"What? What is it, Mom?" Percy asked, concerned, then he looked at the time, too, and his face paled.

"Gabe," he muttered, "he's going to be home any second. He glanced at Leo, who was starting to understand the situation as he knew about Percy's life with Gabe already. "You have to leave."

Leo nodded and promptly threw himself out of the nearest window instead of using the door. Just in time too, because the front door was slammed open. Mother and son watched with wide eyes as Gabe stormed in.

Following him were police officers.

**A/N:**

**Sorry, it's not my best work. I'm not proud of this chapter much, but I needed it to move the story along.**

**First of all, Leo will still come back. He's just leaving the picture for a moment.**

**Second, Gabe isn't getting arrested, unfortunately. I can't have Gabe leaving when I still have more in store for Percy. Plus, we need Gabe to turn into a stone statue in TLT!**

**Anyway, I hope you like it! Please review!**


	8. Hold On

**Ello! So just saying, there's also a scene where Percy draws. I only described one thing he drew, since that's his favorite part of the drawing, but I'm going to say that I'm describing it from experience. No bragging. I'm just saying I'm not making up the steps of that part of the drawing.**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 8: Hold On

Percy stared at the police in front of him. Gabe had walked into a different room, leaving him and his mom to take care of the officers themselves.

Sally spoke, her voice unwavering, "Why are you here?"

The first police officer—there were three of them—answered, "We're here to discuss the disappearance of Rhea Jackson."

Instantly, Percy stiffened. He pressed into himself when the first officer glanced at him for just a second.

"We believe that your son, Perseus Jackson, had something to do with it."

His mother's jaw dropped in horror. "No," she breathed. She shook her head frantically. "No, he wouldn't do that. He loves his sister too much for that." She continued shaking her head wildly. "He still keeps everything she owned."

_Owned_. Past tense. As if . . .

Percy whipped his head up and snapped, "She's _not_ dead."

The second officer looked at him in sympathy. "She could still be alive," he said. "But we don't know that. It's better to assume that she's not."

Percy clenched his fists together. He growled at him, "What if she's still alive? What if she needs us? What if she's in danger and all we're doing is sitting around thinking that she's dead? How is that better?" his voice was near hysterical now.

The third officer sighed. He glanced at Sally. "He seems to be in denial," the officer said unemotionally.

Percy crossed his arms. "You don't know her. She's alive. I just know it."

The officers looked at each other before the second one spoke up again, "We need more evidence. I'm sorry, but we can't do more. It's been three and a half months already."

Percy shook his head furiously. "No, she's not dead. She disappeared. I saw it. She's not dead. Just missing."

The first officer gazed down at him. "Look, kid," he spoke firmly. "She can't literally disappear if that's what you're saying. We've searched. There's no evidence of her being alive."

Percy snapped at him, "Do I need to say it again? She's _not_ dead. We made a promise. A promise that she broke, but she wouldn't go as far as dying."

The officers sighed, which was kind of creepy since they were doing it at the same time. The first one turned to Sally and said quickly in a hushed voice. Sally nodded and turned to her son.

"Percy," she said gently. "Maybe you should go back to your room."

Percy glared at her and huffed. He left and slammed the door to his room.

As soon as it closed, he slid down to the ground, his head buried in his knees.

Teardrop after teardrop streamed down his face, his mouth open in an ugly sob. He rocked himself on the floor, his heart hurting with every drop. Percy crawled to his bed and leaned on it. He looked across the room—to _her_ bed—and choked back another sob.

He missed her. Oh, he so missed her.

He missed her smile. He missed the way her sea-green eyes light up as she laughed. He missed their adventures together, and her voice as she called him an idiot for doing something stupid. He even missed her punches.

Percy stared out the window, sunlight streaming through the glass in radiant dances. He would give anything for _her_ to be back.

He felt like he shouldn't feel this way. Rhea—a tear dropped as her name floated through his head—abandoned him, after all. But he wanted her. He wanted her to come back. And he hated himself for it. He hated himself for not being able to do anything. He hated himself for feeling this way. He hated fate. He hated life. He hated how everything treated him. He hated, he hated, he hated . . .

Percy stood up abruptly. He flung himself onto his bed dragged his hand under the pillow, bringing out a sketchbook. Not just any sketchbook—the sketchbook that he often drew with _her_.

He opened it to the next empty page and began drawing.

He drew the head, the face, the nose, the mouth, the ears, the neck, the cheekbones, and the hair. His hand stroke the pages, the pencil creating something seemingly real and magical. He liked drawing in grayscale—it used to be because the details are more prominent that way, but now he also thought it described his emotions—depressed and isolated.

And then, the eyes. Percy carefully shaped each eye perfectly, not wanting to make a single mistake. He drew the iris, then the pupil, then he shaded the area around the eye. He darkened the top line of the eye and shaded harder. He left a spot for highlights, then he drew the eyelashes. He shaded the sclera softly, darker at the edges, lighter near the iris. He filled in the iris softly, making sure to leave a spot white for the highlight. He added the iris muscles and shaded a little darker, making a slight ring in between the muscles. He then carefully shaped the highlight in a way that would seem like the sun was glinting near the right corner. Percy darkened some lines of the entire eye in the appropriate places, then he darkened the pupil. He added the reflection of the eyelashes in the sclera and cornea—the iris and the pupil. Tiny eyelashes reflected on the eye, especially prominent on the highlight of the iris. Percy stroke the finishing touches of his eyes, satisfied, then drew the eyebrows. Once he was finished, he started on the next eye.

"Percy?"

Percy jumped a meter and turned toward his window only to see Leo leaning on the windowsill casually.

"Leo, you scared me half to death!" Percy exclaimed. Leo shrugged, his eyes filled with concern.

"Percy, what was that about?" Leo asked worriedly.

Percy clenched his jaw and turned back to his drawing. "Don't want to talk about it."

He could feel Leo's gaze on him as he drew. The silence stretched on, the voices of the police and his mother out on the living room muffled by the door.

Finally, Leo spoke up again, "Who's Rhea? She seems important . . ."

Percy gripped the pencil tighter as Leo continued, "The police were talking about where she is, right? And then they said she was dead—"

"She's. _Not._ Dead." The growl from Percy's throat hissed threateningly. Leo blinked in surprise and shrunk back on himself—from shame, not fear.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

Percy tore his gaze from his friend and focused on his drawing.

Leo changed the subject. "What are you drawing?"

Unfortunately, that wasn't much of a subject change as it was still the same topic.

"Rhea," Percy mumbled.

"Oh."

Silence.

"I . . ." Leo trailed off. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked tentatively. "It helps if you, um, talk about it."

Percy exhaled slowly. He closed the sketchbook and turned toward Leo. Percy shifted. "Rhea, she—" He stopped himself. He closed his eyes before opening them again. He tried a different way, "It was three and a half months ago. We decided to sneak out of the house through our bedroom window. We went kinda far. Far enough to the forest."

Leo widened his eyes. "That far?"

Percy sighed. "Yes, that far. Anyway, we reached there, but . . ." He hesitated. "_Something_ attacked us. I managed to push Rhea out of the way, and I was unconscious afterward, but Rhea told me she killed it with a spear. Apparently, the water also healed me."

Leo didn't question it. He was too into the story.

"She told me it was a hellhound, and that Greek Mythology is real. I believed her at first, but then I decided to _not_ believe that because we both could have been hallucinating—"

"Hall—what?"

"Hallucinating."

"Hall—hallu—hallucina—hallucinating?"

"Yeah. Well, we went home after that, but then a few days later, Rhea and I got into this argument." Percy hesitated again. "She," he choked. "She wanted to _leave_. To _abandon_ me, and I tried to convince her otherwise, but then that night she just _left_. I managed to catch up with her, but she was disappearing. Leo, she was _fading_ into the _water_." Tears were streaming down his face. He let out a shuddering breath and continued, "She said I could live without her. And—and I got angry because we _promised_ each other to _never_ leave each other. We couldn't be _without each other_, but then she just had the nerve to say that I can go on _without her_. I—and I _left_. I left, and when I looked back, she was _gone_."

Percy looked up from his hands and saw a shocked Leo.

Leo didn't say anything. He just scooted closer to Percy. Percy appreciated that. He didn't want any pity. He just wanted silence.

"Look," Leo said, his voice hoarse, "I know that this won't cover what you've felt, but I'm sorry."

Percy tilted his head, allowing a small smile to spread over his features.

_At least someone cares._

_And no matter what, dear sister, I'll still hold on to you._

**A/N:**

**So, this is just a filler chapter. Nothing much, but it shows little more of a bromance between Percy and Leo.**

**Please review!**


	9. Ἀτλαντὶς

**Hello, I'm back! I am back and now presenting you with a new chapter! I'm sorry for the wait. Homework is beginning to go up.**

**Thank you, Aster, for suggesting this amazing idea for the chapter!**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 9: Ἀτλαντὶς

_She_ couldn't see.

The darkness surged around _her_, dragging _her_ deeper into the abyss. Melodies hummed in _her_ ears, a whisper that spoke ominously of _her_ destiny.

It was always the same ever since that day. The same darkness, the same voices, the same feeling of hopelessness.

_She _wondered if _she_ chose the right decision, after all.

Deep pulsing lights flared all around _her_, ocean-blue enveloping _her_ surroundings. The tendrils pulled at _her_ once more, water flowing around _her_ face. _Her_ inky hair swirled in the liquid.

_She _couldn't move.

_She _couldn't hear.

_She _felt _herself_ changing before _she_ saw it.

When _she_ opened _her_ eyes, _she_ couldn't even gasp.

Right where _her_ legs should be, cobalt blue fishtails shimmered in the now prominent sunlight, golden linings trailing along the bottom edge of _her_ twin tail fins. The scales gave a metallic glow, illuminating the water in a blue degree. Stray, blue scales dotted _her_ skin, finally easing out at the top of _her_ stomach. _Her_ fingers were webbed with a sky blue, sea blue fins rising from _her_ forearms with a hint of silver, a gold line bordering the fins. _She _twisted _her_ head, spotting a cobalt blue dorsal fin sprouting from _her_ back, the silvery-gold lining the edge, eventually fading into a spiral at the rough bottom end.

_She_ was pulled deeper into the sunlit tunnel, _her_ body limp and numb. The feeling was returning to _her_, but still, _she_ allowed _herself_ to get dragged down to the darker end.

The dark tunnel gave way to soft, shimmering light, its glow blue-green. _She_ was suddenly thrust through the water and forced to use _her_ tail to keep _herself_ steady. A small squeak left _her_ lips, _her_ tail furiously trying to work itself correctly.

It didn't help.

_She_ smashed into a boulder before _she_ could stop _herself_.

Pain blossomed at the side of _her_ head. _She_ struggled to keep _herself_ upright in the water, but only collapsed on the sandy floor. _She_ curled into _herself_, _her_ twin tails wrapping around _her_, a hand pressed against _her_ head to alleviate the pain. _Her_ vision blurred, head swimming.

_She_ let out a shuddering breath and squinted at the sand around _her_. _She _was seeing double now. _She_ doubted that was a good thing.

The water currents around _her_ suddenly shifted. _She_ could hear the beat of the water in an unfamiliar rhythm, yet still known as the thrust of a mertail, though how _she_ knew that _she_ didn't know.

A hand landed on _her_ shoulder gently. _She_ shivered. The hand was different than a regular human's. It was rougher, yet softer at the same time. A slippery feeling slid off _her_ shoulder, which _she_ realized with a start that it was the hand that gave the feeling. Like a fish, but without scales.

_She_ turned _her_ head reluctantly to the mer. Through _her_ hazy vision, _she_ could make out brown hair, tan skin, red-orange fins, and a fiery red fishtail. The mer was a male.

_Are you okay?_

_She_ nearly jumped at the male voice in _her_ head. A chuckle echoed in _her_ brain, and _she_ idly wondered if _she_ was going crazy.

_No, you're not._

This time, _she_ jumped, which _she_ instantly regretted. Pain laced _her_ entire body as _she_ drifted back down to the ocean floor.

The merman widened his eyes—_she_ noticed that they were a beautiful indigo—and laid a hand on _her_ side carefully.

"I'm sorry." The same male voice _she_ had heard in _her_ head spoke to _her_ again, only this time it was out loud.

"Was that you?" _she_ slurred.

He surprised _her_ by laughing. "Yes, that was me. I'm sorry I scared you like that. I normally speak telepathically whenever I think the other wouldn't be able to hear me out loud. Guess I was wrong."

_She_ shifted in the sand and started to sit up. A hand shot out to push _her_ back, this time propping _her_ on a boulder.

"Who are you?" _she_ asked curiously. _Her_ voice was less slurred now.

The merman smiled. "I'm Ilios. The Sun."

"Ilios," _she_ repeated. The name rolled off _her_ tongue. It felt natural. The name was fitting for the merman.

"What is yours?" Ilios asked.

_She_ tilted _her_ head to the side, which only ended giving pain to _herself_.

Ilios noticed this. "Here, let me heal that."

_She_ didn't know why—this was a stranger for the gods' sake!—but _she_ relented anyway.

When his hand touched the side of _her_ head, warmth carried out throughout _her_ body. _She_ sighed contently, melting into his touch.

When the hand drew back, _she_ felt _herself_ yearning for the touch again. _She_ guessed it was because of the warmth it brought to _her_. The name _Ilios_ suddenly felt more fitting for the merman.

Touching the side of _her_ head, _she_ realized that the wound was now gone to a small scab. _She_ looked at Ilios, grateful for the help.

"Thank you," _she _whispered.

Ilios waved it away. "It wasn't a problem."

_She_ hesitated, before asking, "How did you do that?"

Ilios blushed. "I—I'm training to be one of the medics of my kingdom."

"Your kingdom?"

"Yeah. Anyway, I never got your name."

_She_ wanted to ask more about the kingdom, but instead smiled at him. "Rhea."

Ilios echoed the name. "Rhea. It sounds fitting for such a beautiful mermaid like you." He winked at her.

Rhea blushed. "I—I thought we're—we're seven?" She pushed herself up from the boulder, her tail sweeping the floor.

"Actually, I'm eight."

An awkward silence reigned over them at that piece of information.

"Why do you have two tail fins instead of one?"

Rhea tore her eyes off of the sand. "What?"

Ilios blushed again. "I—I'm sorry if that sounded rude. But usually, only royalty have twin tail fins."

Rhea pondered this before the realization came to her like a smack from a brick. Of course. Why didn't she figure that out sooner? The water obeying to her commands, the mertail, everything. But that meant that . . .

"My father is Poseidon," Rhea said nervously, unsure of how Ilios would react to that information.

His jaw dropped. "You—I—what? Lord Poseidon has a daughter? Lord Triton's sister?"

Rhea had no idea who Triton was, but she nodded her head.

Ilios instantly stood up straight and bowed to her. "I—I am sorry, my princess. I did not know it was you who ventured far from the kingdom. Perhaps you would let me escort you back home?"

Rhea felt uncomfortable about the formalities. She had never had to deal with this before, she never even knew she was a princess until this moment.

Quietly, she whispered, "Please, Ilios, rise." She winced at how formal she sounded even without practice. "You do not need to bow to me."

Ilios slowly straightened. "Are—are you sure, Your Majesty?"

Rhea sighed. "Yes, and please, no formalities."

Ilios seemed to hesitate for a moment before saying tentatively, "O—of course, my La—uh, Rhea."

Rhea covered her face with her webbed hands. "Please, don't feel uncomfortable around me. You're perfectly safe with me. I don't bite," she teased at the end.

Ilios's lips twitched. Slowly but surely, he smiled. "Well, you still have to go home, _Rhea_."

Home. It was a weird sensation that was sent through her body. She left home, only to be welcomed into another. An underwater home.

She smiled. "Yes. Yes, I do."

Ilios smirked. With a flick of his tail, he was soon swimming toward the east. Rhea followed.

When she reached his side, she asked curiously, "Where are we going?"

Ilios glanced at her coyly, which made her heart flutter in her chest.

_Stop that,_ she chided herself. _You're only seven._

She turned back to Ilios as soon as she heard him say something.

"Ἀτλαντὶς, the kingdom of the sea."

**A/N:**

**Whew! That was fun and exhausting at the same time! Anyway, I'm sorry again for making you guys wait.**

**Virtual cookie for anyone who guesses what the Ancient Greek word, Ἀτλαντὶς, mean! And no, no Google Translate. Besides, Google doesn't give us Ancient Greek, only Greek. But even so, they're similar enough to give you the answer to **_**this**_ **particular word especially. I guess it's also easy to predict what Ἀτλαντὶς means, anyway, so Google Translate isn't going to be needed.**

**Please review!**

**Earth out!**


	10. Christmas Special

**Hello! Christmas is here, so I'm going to present to you this special chapter! After a long wait, chapter 10 is finally out!**

**The next chapter is a work in progress. I was writing it when I had this idea. It's Christmas, after all!  
I'm also trying this out in Leo's perspective. Hope you guys enjoy!**

**Also, in case of some confusion—which I'm sure there will be—this is time-skipped from the last chapter (yes, the chapter on Rhea, which is about a half month after the chapter before that). It's now been a year and three months since Rhea disappeared, meaning that it's been a year since Chapter 8.**

**I DO NOT OWN PJO; RICK RIORDAN DOES.**

Chapter 10: Christmas Special

_Poke poke poke._

He didn't move.

_Poke poke poke-poke._

Leo tilted his head at the unmoving figure and poked him again. Percy rolled over, groaning, but still, he didn't awake. Sighing dramatically, Leo leaned back on his heels.

An idea suddenly struck him.

With a huge, maniacal grin on his face, he stepped closer toward the older boy and placed both his hands on top of Percy. Adding a little more pressure to the spots, Leo wiggled his fingers.

Percy bolted out of the bed, a choked sound gurgling from his throat, and promptly fell to the floor with a thump. He gasped, "No. No more tickling."

Leo snickered, "Then get up."

Glaring at the Latino boy, Percy slowly stood from where he was lying. He squinted at his friend. "Aren't you supposed to be at the Greens' apartment?"

A week after the police came, Leo had been shocked to find out that Sally had searched for a foster home for him. He'd tried declining, but Percy's mother had insisted that "a young boy like you deserves a good home with a good family". Now, Leo lived a floor below Percy's apartment, content in his new home.

Home. He hadn't thought of that word for months. Not since that day. . . .

Leo shook his head to clear it. He was at a new home now, with a new family. He didn't need to think about that anymore. At least this was a good home, unlike others.

Still, he couldn't forget his mom.

"Leo?" Percy's voice jolted him out of his thoughts. Leo blinked at his friend, who was looking at him worriedly. "Are you okay?"

A grin spreading across his face, Leo quipped, "Of course I'm not. I'm awesome and cool!" He puffed out his chest proudly.

Percy's concerned look turned to one of exasperation. "Yeah, and I'm a hippopotamus," he drawled sarcastically.

Leo made a strangled noise. "What's with you and hippopo— whatever that is." He shook his head. "Stop using big words."

Percy grinned teasingly. "Well, excuse me for being forced to learn big words."

Gasping dramatically, Leo cried, "You were _forced_ to learn?"

Percy nodded. "Yep," he said, popping the "p". He continued, "It's not my fault. Rhea—" He suddenly stopped and gulped. "Anyway, why did you wake me?"

Leo regarded his friend in concern. He shook himself out of it. This was a special day. It wasn't time for mourning and worries.

He spread his arms, his mouth stretched into a grin so wide it hurt. "You'll see why!" he said cheerfully. "Just close your eyes and I'll lead you to the living room!"

Percy stared at him, confused. "What?" he asked smartly. "What about Gabe?"

Leo waved it off. "The walrus is somewhere. Probably drunk. Sally convinced him to leave. That woman can bribe!"

Percy looked at him weirdly before closing his eyes. Barely concealing his excitement, Leo grabbed his hand and dragged him to the living room.

Sally met him on the way there, sending an amused glance toward the pair before she entered her bedroom.

Tugging excitedly at Percy's arm, Leo bounced into the room. He stopped a bit and was about to stare at it in awe—despite already having seen it—when Percy cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Can I look now?" he asked slowly, carefully, as if cautious and afraid of what he was about to see.

Leo laughed and pulled the black-haired boy in front of him. "Yes!" he exclaimed gleefully.

Percy slowly pried his free hand away from his eyes, then gasped at the scene in front of him. Leo took his time absorbing the room, too. Seeing it multiple times never ceased to amaze him.

The room was adorned in sparkling Christmas lights, red and green lighting up the entire area. Stockings hung at the fireplace, one red, one green, and one blue—most definitely Percy's. A laurel wreath dangled above the fireplace, golden ornaments embedded alongside the seemingly real berries in the wreath.

A large Christmas tree stood at a corner, covering half of the window. Twinkling blue, green, red, and the occasional purple lights wrapped around the tree, draping across leaves with red and golden ornaments.

Leo glanced back at Percy, only to stifle a laugh as his friend resembled a fish. Trembling slightly, Percy reached a hand out to the tree before pulling it back tentatively. His face was a look of wonder as he stared at the room.

A click behind them made the two boys whirl around to see Sally standing and smiling at the doorway, camera in hand.

"Mom?" Percy whispered. He looked at the Christmas decorations and turned back to her as he stepped forward. "I thought we didn't have the money for this?"

Sally smiled at her son lovingly. Leo longed for a mother like that.

"I've been saving up," Sally told Percy gently. She set the camera aside. "I want you to have a normal merry Christmas, especially with Leo."

Percy seemed to be blinking back tears. Leo wondered if he was going to break down in front of him.

Then Percy developed a look of confusion. "Wait . . ." he trailed off. Tilting his head in confusion, he asked, "Today's Christmas?"

Sally looked like she was trying _very_ hard not to laugh. "Yes, sweetie. Today's Christmas."

Percy turned back to the tree with a pure look of glee and wonder.

Then he looked confused again.

"There are presents here."

Sally blinked at him. "Of course there are."

"How did Smelly Gabe not see them?"

.

.

.

After a moment's pause, Sally answered, "I hid them yesterday, then when Gabe was asleep I placed them under the tree."

Leo decided to speak up, "And I also distracted the guy long enough for him to leave the house."

Percy glanced at his friend suspiciously. "And what did you do?"

Smiling sheepishly, Leo turned around and whistled, scratching his head.

Sally shook her head. "Percy, honey, let's not think about what he did."

Percy sighed before grinning.

Then he looked confused once more.

"Mom . . . how did he not see the entire decoration?"

Leo froze, turning around ever so slowly, his eyes blinking rapidly. "I, uh . . ."

Spinning around to face Leo, Percy raised an eyebrow.

Upon meeting his stare, Leo squeaked and raised his hands in quick surrender. "I did nothing! I swear! It was just dark and I decided to do something before the Christmas lights turn on and Sally! Sally even helped and we got him out of the house but when he looked back because he said that he saw something suspicious I—"

"Okay, Leo, that's enough," Sally interrupted his rambling. "It's Christmas! We should celebrate and enjoy the day!" She turned around quickly and speed-walked out of the room into the kitchen.

Percy looked back and forth between Leo and the place where Sally disappeared in. "What?"

Leo waved him off. "It's, eh, nothing."

Blinking once. Twice. Three times. Percy shrugged, relieving a sigh from Leo. He thanked the amazing Rick Riordan the author that he made Percy this oblivious even if he's a little smart.

It _was_ Christmas, after all.

A sweet aroma wafted through the room, reaching his senses.

"COOKIES!"

Scrambling to reach the delicious blue cookies that were legendary in the Jackson household, both boys tripped on the floor before shooting back up, their arms outstretched. Sally set the cookies on the dining table, her mouth open in a carefree laugh that could only be heard once she was alone with the children.

Smelly Gabe had left the apartment for now. They could enjoy Christmas.

When Percy opened his very first present under the Christmas tree, he squealed in happy childish laughter that an eight-year-old should possess. Right after that, Leo ripped the wrappings off of his gift, gasping dramatically when he saw the little trinkets and toys that could become tools for him to tinker with.

With Gabe gone for the day, they could freely hang Christmas decorations on their apartment door for their neighbors to see.

_Merry Christmas_, a sign gleamed proudly.

**A/N:**

**And . . . the chapter is done! Started on Christmas Eve and finished on Christmas Day!**

**So what do guys think? Just the right chapter for the right day!**

**It's still late though . . . just a few minutes before 12 AM on the day after Christmas . . . oh, well.**

**Merry Christmas to all!**


End file.
